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One voting left the other voting right while at the same time doingthe right thing is left out.

If a picture is worth a 1000 words, the above caption speaks volumes. If we look closely, we can see a donkey in a voting booth on the left side, and an elephant in a voting booth on the right side. These two animals were trained and led into these booths, most likely lured in by incentives; perhaps a carrot or something sweet. Letting the imagination go when comparing this picture with our current voting process would be very entertaining but, I will restrain myself for the sake of a more helpful conversation.

I want to spend this month’s culture segment on one word, the word that is being thrown around in the media as something “we the people” should just accept. The word is…. “partisanship.” Partisanship as described in the Oxford dictionary of English is: prejudice in favor of a particular cause; bias. Webster’s dictionary describes partisan as: an adherent or supporter of a person, group, party, or cause, esp. A person who shows a biased, emotional allegiance. Synonyms for partisanship are words like; bias, onesided, prejudiced, bigoted, and narrowminded. And as if this wasn’t enough to make us leery of being partisan, patriotic phrases such as, ”the United States of America,” ”united we stand,” ”one nation under God indivisible,” or,”out of many one,” seem to be in direct contrast to this word.

Holding our principles unwavering is our patriotic duty and will make our country stronger as long as those principles are also held in a uniting fashion. Holding principles in an exclusionary manner only pits American against American at a time when we need all hands on deck in order to keep our country afloat. I am convinced Republicans, Democrats, Independents and Libertarians have an equal amount of good and bad ideas, and I would prefer to take the good ideas from all parties and leave all the bad ideas behind.

When we pledge allegiance to our flag, we are pledging allegiance to the Republic our flag stands for. To give allegiance to parties or organizations above our country for any reason is not only unpatriotic; it is treasonous. Regardless of the political party we most agree with, we must never give up our independence. We do not vote by proxy, we must all do it individually. Individual responsibility to country will put our nations’ house back in order.
And that is my soapbox; individual responsibility.

There are two things I want to accomplish with this article. First, to all American Patriots; I want to share my motivation to do everything I can to preserve our country. Simply put, I think of a soldier. A soldier puts on their boots every morning and goes to a place where they can best defend the liberties of our country’s citizens. They have the resolve to accomplish their mission or die trying. They are taking care of all the dirty and dangerous jobs.

Defending those same liberties our soldiers are willing to die for, requires that the citizens themselves stand up and defend against those who wish to take them away from within. To leave our job undone is an insult to the men and women in uniform.

Second, to those who are faith based, I want to share some thoughts for you to consider. “To the angel of the church of the United States write.” ……………. Just saying, what if!

Let’s consider some” talents” we as a Church have been entrusted with. Freedom of religion, freedom to assemble peaceably, freedom of speech, freedom of the press, and freedom to petition the Government, and that’s just in the first amendment of the constitution. As important as these are they are secondary to the concept of self governing.
Our forefathers had Divine insight in setting up a Representative Democracy, which means we have a government “by the people and for the people.” Our forefathers did not have complete confidence in the people’s ability to govern themselves. They knew the people were smart enough, talented enough, hardworking and strong enough, but as evidenced in their writings they were all concerned about the sustainability of the people’s virtues.

I believe that God has blessed the United States of America for the purpose of blessing the entire world and that He left the sustainability of the virtues of the people to the influence of His Church inside a representative democracy. To put it bluntly, the Church has a critical role in defending the freedoms of the citizens of our country, it is to example the virtues and exercise the rights God has given to the people of this great nation. Our nation has approximately 320 million people, of that 320 million, 80% profess a Judeo Christian affiliation, with 25% of the nation’s population being under 18 years of age that leaves approximately 192 million voting age people who are influenced by Judeo Christian values. In the 2012 Presidential election, there were about 127 million votes cast, leaving about 113 million voting aged people unaccounted for, of which 80% of them profess to have a Judeo Christian affiliation.

With numbers like these I can’t help but wonder if many of the members of the church of the United States of America have buried their talents and are waiting the Lord’s return. The question is, what is the state of our reunion? Will we the Church be weighed and found wanting? Will the Lord say ”well done good and faithful servants” or will He call us evil and lazy?

It is not my desire to belittle or shame anyone. My hope is to inspire those who love God and country to be engaged, alert, and well informed. A goal for every American should be to go to the voting booth with the dilemma of voting for the best of two goods.

Keep in mind with the best of two goods we can’t lose, but with the least of two evils we can’t win

Could another government shutdown be imminent in early 2014? Could the Federal government’s control over all the areas of our life be on display once again? Will we be watching the media demagogue our nation’s finances? Who will go down in the polls, and what new promises will be made to correct the situation?

With much dread we will be asking ourselves these questions in the near future. But the question I want you to ask is; does the President or the Congress really shut down the government?

The answer is no.

What shuts down the government is its authorization to borrow money expires. It expires because of the Second Liberty Bond Act of 1917. Prior to 1917 each bond issue by the United States Treasury had to be separately authorized by Congress. The process gave Congress full control over the nation’s debt, the process however proved to be inadequate for emergency responses.

Financial contributions to Europe during the First World War, lead to the passing of the Liberty Bond Act. After 1917 the executive branch was allowed to issue bonds and take on other debt without congressional approval, as long as the total debt fell under a statutory debt ceiling.

In a nutshell here’s how our nation’s finances are designed to work. The Congress passes a budget, the president signs that budget; any emergency spending necessary can be done without congressional approval as long as it does not exceed the congressionally approved debt ceiling. The design is rather simple when followed in good faith, and that’s where our government shutdowns take root.

Today, very little effort is put forth on a complete budget, and an equal amount of effort is used to restrain spending outside the budget. As a result the government runs out of congressionally approved borrowing on a frequent basis. Our politicians, past and present, have found it much easier to raise the debt ceiling to cover their inadequacies, (or deliberate manipulations), than to control government spending.

Do you know how much you owe?
I’m not talking about your personal budget i.e., your house and your car. I’m talking about your debt as a citizen of the United States America. Did you know that you owe $54,000? Every person who is a citizen of our country owes this amount; every man, woman and child. If you have a family of four, your total household debt for your government services is $216,000 and is growing every second.

What’s that? Did you say you didn’t order any government services? Directly, I’m sure you didn’t, but indirectly, through our political system, you did.If there’s one thing I want you to remember about our country it’s that it is a representative democracy; which means “we the people” have a government by the people and for the people. We elect representatives and they do our bidding; we are responsible for what they bind us to.

Spending time in a checkout line is by no means anyone’s favorite pastime. Exchanging a $20.00 bill for a plastic bag filled with items you’ll have to buy again tomorrow just isn’t fun. We all go through this spending exercise because we have to; not because we want to. Humans are consumptive and must be fed, clothed, and sheltered on an ongoing basis.

As a community of people, we have set up institutions inside our governments to provide us with other ongoing needs we as individuals could not provide on our own, namely; common defense and justice. These institutions must be funded on a perpetual basis and are consumptive in nature. The fact is all government spending is consumptive.

Now about that $54,000 each of us owes. This money has already been sent to provide government services from the past. If we want to have these services today and tomorrow we must pay an additional $11,875 each for this year. So, if there are four people in your household that would be $47,500.
You may be wondering how it’s possible for you to pay your $11,875 per each person in your household when the average household income in 2012 was less than $52,000, and the $11,875 does not include any of your essential day to day needs, or state and local taxes. It’s called a progressive tax code.

In a nutshell, a progressive tax code means: the more you make the more you pay. The laws supporting the tax code are a lot like many of our other laws in America.Through time and through manipulation of politicians, they yield little intended consequences and many unintended ones. The internal revenue code is said to be so large and complicated that no one could possibly understand it much less follow it.

The unintended consequences of the tax code are found in the general spending habits of the upper income brackets. A rich person and a poor person have the same basic needs for survival. Though the rich person may consume their 2500 daily calories with caviar or drive a Rolls Royce, there just isn’t enough price difference to consume all the money a rich person will make. The phrase, “it doesn’t matter what you make, it’s what you keep that counts,” this phrase is what a rich person is most interested in,(what they keep after expenses and taxes).

There are only two ways to make money. One is to physically engage in a labor or activity,and the other is to have money make money,(usury). For most people,trading their time and skill set for a wage or salary is the predominant way they provide for their needs. If there is any money left over, it will go to their retirement fund. It will make a little money, but not anything comparable to what the rich will do with their extra money.

The “bottom line” is what these rich investors are looking for; the amount they get to keep. If they invest a million dollars, they want the highest rate of return for their million. If it’s 100 million, they expect even more percentage wise. Those unintended consequences are when those needing these investors to capitalize their products or services pay the usury. That usury is passed on to the consumer of their products. The cost of using the money of the wealthy is paid by the poor.Thus, the rich get richer and the poor get poorer.

When you hear politicians say they’re going to raise the taxes on the rich, what they are actually doing is using the rich to collect the taxes. The rich will pass their increased tax burden on to the consumer of basic needs either directly through products their companies make or indirectly through usury and usually both. Remember, they calculate from the bottom line. Everything else is the price of doing business and that is passed on to consumers of which we and “we the people’s” government are.

Our bottom line: In reality the United States of America does not have a progressive tax code; it has a hidden consumptive tax. The 17 trillion dollars of debt is simply the amount of money the government has not been able to filter through to the consumer. That’s why our government continues to urge people to consume, because if they don’t spend at a rate faster than the government, the debt will continue to rise.

The Grand Experiment: The United States of America
At the time of our country’s birth, the idea that people could actually rule themselves had never been given serious thought, much less tried on such a large scale. Throughout recorded history, it was known among the elite of mankind that the earth was flat, drilling holes in a person’s head would relieve their headache, and masses of people must be ruled by those of superior status.
People doing the right things without being told what to do or think could not possibly work. If it did work, it would mean all men were equal, and all men being equal would allow them to pursue their own interests and dreams regardless of their bloodline.
The pundits of this experiment were all expecting this grand scheme to fall apart as soon as hardship came upon the people, but the people of this country had already endured the hardships of an oppressive King. Fueled by their hope of freedom, our forefathers were prepared for any external obstacles. The only question unanswered would be: could “we the people” control our freedom.
Our forefathers had firsthand experience with oppressive rule, and were well aware of the perils uncharted territories would bring. They proceeded with prayerful caution in setting up a Representative Democracy. George Washington would write; “the preservation of the sacred fire of liberty… Is finally staked, on the experiment entrusted to the hands of the American people.”
The signatures of the 56 men who signed the declaration of independence put them “all in.” If this Republic did not work, (Benjamin Franklin writes) “we must, indeed all hang together or, most assuredly, we shall hang separately.” They would pay with their very lives. Our forefathers had faith in doing what was right, and they knew their Creator would protect and sustain them and their new Republic as long as they and the people retained their virtue.
The virtue they and I are talking about is the willingness of the people to treat each other in a just and moral way. Everyone is equal and our rights are given by our Creator not our government or a special group of people. Thomas Jefferson writes, “Can the liberties of a nation be thought secure when we have removed the only firm basis a conviction in the minds of the people that these liberties are the gift of God?”
“Bad men cannot make good citizens. It is when a people forget God that tyrants forge their chains. A vitiated state of morals, a corrupted public conscience, is incompatible with freedom. No free government, or the blessings of liberty, can be preserved to any people but by a firm adherent to justice, moderation, temperance, frugality, and virtue; and by a frequent recurrence to fundamental principles.” – Patrick Henry-
Allegiance to our country while holding the morals of our creator is the catalyst that keeps our government in check. John Adams echoes this theme as he writes, “no free government can stand without virtue in the people, and a lofty spirit of patriotism… Our constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other.” The institutions of our governments are corrupt and inept, not because of the people who hold the office, but because of the moral decay of the constituents they serve. The culture of “we the people” reveals our preference to the emotional drama of opinion over the tranquil peace of truth.
“Neither the wisest constitution, nor the wisest laws will secure the liberty and happiness of a people whose manners are universally corrupt. He therefore is the truest friend of the liberty of his country who tries most to promote its virtue.” –Samuel Adams If “we the people” are to have a long and prosperous future with liberty and justice for all; this is where we must start the remodel of our Republic. We must strengthen our moral resolve.
I have dubbed myself a faith based political writer. My intentions are not to belt people with the Bible, my Christian faith, or my Judeo Christian theology, but rather to bear witness to the truths they offer our Republic. I’m starting a series of books addressing the many issues that hinder the prosperity of our country. Starting with the divisions we find in our alliance to our fellow countrymen, the issue of unwanted children has been a canker in our Republic for almost 50 years, and it has driven wedges so deep into our citizenry we have become a sitting target for those who wish us harm. It is my opinion that our country cannot sustain its sovereignty with such great a divide. We must as a people with overwhelming consensus resolve this issue. In my first book, “Abortion the True Cost to America” I write about what I believe are self- evident truths that we all must deal with. I truly believe that if we as a people will solve this issue with an honest conscience, the blessings our forefathers talked about will manifest themselves in our nation’s prosperity.Visit https://jdsharp.net/ for more information. You can also purchase books at Amazon in e-book and paperback.http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_i_1_13?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=abortion%20the%20true%20cost%20to%20america&sprefix=abortion+the+%2Caps%2C183

Happy Birthday America!
May God bless America my home sweet home and may our forefathers rest in peace.